The Comfort Book by Matt Haig | Book Review | October 2021

 Matt Haig's novels and non-fiction/memoir type books are my go-to for mental health inspiration. When I saw that he was publishing a new book, I knew I was going to immediately consume it. The Comfort Book boasts itself on the reassuring quotes and saying you need to get by in life. What I took from it is the softness of slowing down, which we have all had to do in the past 18 months. 

As you work your way through the book, there's a really focus on being aware of your needs, especially mental health needs. Haig has a gentle way of caring for the reader, reassuring you that it's okay to not 100% dedicated to life right now. We're sociable creatures in a modern, technological society, how do we process when we're constantly connecting on a virtual level rather than in person? The COVID-19 pandemic has made us depend on social media to get us through somedays and to connect with others on a virtual element. Yet, we're programmed to socialise in person. The Comfort Book gives us comfort knowing that through all the comparison we do on social media, we are enough in ourselves. We don't need to change, but adapt to different mindsets and environments that we are surrounded with in the most sustainable way possible.

Matt Haig has been quite an inspirational icon on social media for me. It's almost as if his posts pop up at the right time. If you're scrolling through and comparing yourself to all the faces and bodies that you see, and then Matt's calming aura on social media comes around; bringing you back down to earth and reminding you that you are enough just the way you are. 

Some of my favourite quotes from the book: 

'Another reason I don't have to fight with Plato is because Aristotle already did. Aristotle, himself a one-time student of Plato's, had a looser, more earth-bound approach to life. He believed that we shouldn't focus on an abstract world of essential forms because this world right here - this one we live on - contains those essential forms. For Plato a tree was always a poor imitation of an ideal tree, whereas for Aristotle a tree always contains its essential tree-ness in its very substance' p.142 (agree with Aristotle :) 

'Beauty is any moment that makes us gasp with the hope and wonder of life, and the world is full of such moments. They shine in the dark. And they are ours for the taking: "Dwell on the beauty of life", wrote Marcus Aurelius in his Meditations two millennia ago, "watch the stars, and see yourself running with them'' p.179

Obviously there are many more, but those brought the mystical and historical context of life. We've been here for thousands of years, yet we're still dictating the meaning of life. In some respects, The Comfort Book reminds us that it's okay to still not know your purpose, and like Aristotle we need to focus on the beauty of what is in front of us. Especially being in my 20s, I've started to really question and sometimes worry about my purpose and career. Reading The Comfort Book and even the rest of Matt Haig's non-fiction work, I've been reminded that it's okay to not know, and it's okay to not have everything figured out. That's why Matt Haig is one author I will always come back to, time and time again. The Comfort Book really is the comfort you need. 

Sometimes all you need is a book full of quotes, they're easy to read but impactful. They impact your thoughts on another level. You process the information and transfer it to your own life. Books full of quotes and mindfulness will always be my favourite. 

Happy Reading! 

Rose x